Tyler County man arrested for cold murder case gets life in prison for unrelated charges

TYLER COUNTY, Texas (KTRE) - A Tyler County man who was recently arrested and indicted in connection to the 1988 death of Patricia Ann Jacobs was sentenced to life in prison after he was convicted on two unrelated charges Tuesday.

The jury trial for Daniel Andrew MacGinnis, 60, was held in Judge Delinda Gibbs-Walker’s judicial district courtroom. According to the texts of the judgments, the jury convicted MacGinnis for possession of a controlled substance between 1 and 4 grams and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, which are both felonies.

According to a KJAS.com story, Gibbs-Walker sentenced MacGinnis to life in prison for the firearm charge and 99 years for the drug possession charge. The punishment was enhanced because of his criminal record.

The judgments did not specify whether MacGinnis will serve his prison sentences concurrently, or at the same time.

On Aug. 28, MacGinnis was indicted on one count of first-degree felony murder in connection to Jacobs’ death, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety. He is accused of killing Jacobs in October of 1988, and the motive in her death is still unclear.

The DPS press release said that Jacobs, 36, attended a meeting at the now-closed Silver Spur tavern in rural Hardin County on the evening of Oct. 8, 1988. When she didn’t return home, her husband drove to the bar and found her pickup in the parking lot.

At that point, Jacobs’ husband called the Hardin County Sheriff’s Office and reported her missing.

On Oct. 6, Jacobs’ body was found in the Neches River in Port Arthur, which is located in Jefferson County, the press release stated. Her body was found about 40 miles from where she was last seen at the Silver Spur.

MacGinnis lived in Warren at the time of Jacobs’ death, and the Texas Rangers, the Port Arthur Police Department, and the Hardin County Sheriff’s Office investigated Jacobs’ slaying and determined MacGinnis was a suspect at the time, the press release stated. By the spring of 1989, MacGinnis had fled Texas and was in California.

When Texas Rangers traveled to California to interview MacGinnis, he denied any involvement in Jacobs’ death, the press release stated. The two people had no prior contact.

According to the press release, the investigation stalled until October 2018 when a family member contacted the Texas Rangers to request an update on the case. The Port Arthur Police and Texas Rangers determined there was evidence in the case that had not previously been examined by the Texas Department of Public Safety’s Crime Laboratory. The DNA in question was submitted to the DPS lab for testing, and it was a match for MacGinnis, the press release stated.

MacGinnis was arrested on Aug. 27 and charged with first-degree murder, and he was indicted on the charge the next day, the press release stated. His bond amount has been set at $1 million for the murder charge.

MacGinnis has previously been convicted of crimes in Texas, California, and Idaho. According to the Texas Department of Public Safety’s sex offender database, MacGinnis has served prison sentences for aggravated kidnapping, rape, and sexual assault in Texas and California.

The Texas Rangers are continuing their investigation and have reached out to law enforcement agencies in California, Idaho, and East Texas to determine whether MacGinnis is tied to any other unsolved cases, the press release stated.

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